Congress leader Pawan Khera on Sunday (March 16, 2025) lashed out at the Himanta Biswa Sarma-led BJP government in Assam, over the arrest of a party spokesperson in Guwahati, and asserted that CM Sarma should remember that his days on the Chief Minister’s chair are “limited”. He also alleged that Himanta is ‘scared’ of Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi.
Drawing a comparison, Mr. Khera said that even “10,000 Himanta can’t scare one Gaurav Gogoi”.
Speaking over the arrest of a Congress spokesperson in Assam Pawan Khera said, “This reminds us of the way various Congress leaders have suffered at the hands of Assam police, myself included. The CM should not forget that his days are numbered as the Chief Minister and one day, he will also sit in the opposition.”
“How will he protect his own rights if he violates ours? It shows how scared Himanta Sarma is of Gaurav Gogoi. He is trying to scare Gaurav Gogoi. Gogoi is a blue-blooded Congressman, he can never get scared of him. Ten thousand Himanta Biswa Sarma cannot scare one Gaurav Gogoi,” said Mr. Khera.
Earlier, the arrest of Assam Congress spokesperson Reetam Singh by Lakhimpur police in Guwahati triggered a heated exchange between Congress General Secretary in-charge of Communications Jairam Ramesh and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on X. While Jairam Ramesh condemned the arrest as an “abuse of police powers,” Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma defended the arrest, saying that it was related to a caste-based insult directed at a Dalit woman.
Mr. Ramesh raised the issue on X, linking a media report about Singh’s arrest and tagging Sarma.”The arrest of my young colleague Reetam Singh (@SinghReetam) for a perfectly reasonable social media post is worse than atrocious Mr Chief Minister @himantabiswa,” Mr. Ramesh wrote.
The Assam Chief Minister hit back, questioning Congress’s stance and accusing Mr. Ramesh of justifying offensive remarks against a Dalit woman’s husband. He also warned of an impending “big revelation” linking a senior Congress leader, Gaurav Gogoi, to ISI and Pakistan.
“Sir, this case pertains to a caste-based insult directed at a Dalit woman. If you justify calling the husband of a Dalit woman a rapist as a ‘perfectly reasonable’ social media post, it speaks volumes about the direction in which you people have taken the Congress party. But, just wait–the big revelation is yet to come- The nexus of your senior leader with ISI and Pakistan will be exposed by September,” Mr. Sarma replied.
Mr. Ramesh responded sharply, calling Mr. Sarma an “outgoing CM” and accusing him of using the police for political vendetta.”Mr Outgoing CM, stop diverting from the real issue – which is the abuse and misuse of police powers by you personally to favour your associates and fix your opponents,” he wrote.
Reetam Singh was reportedly arrested on Saturday by Lakhimpur police from his residence in Guwahati on the basis of a complaint about a social media post.
On the delimitation issue, Mr. Khera said, “Our stand is clear, states that have done well in social indicators and controlling their population should not be punished for doing so (by reducing seats in Lok Sabha).”Congress leader Pawan Khera defended the Telangana government’s reported inclusion of foreign experts in its caste survey panel, arguing that geographical boundaries should not limit the exchange of expertise. “We live in a global environment. I don’t think geographical boundaries matter when borrowing expertise from other countries,” Mr. Khera said.
He further challenged the BJP-led central government to declare that it had never sought the services of foreign experts during its three terms in power.”I challenge the BJP government to claim that they have not taken services of any foreign national during NDA 1, NDA 2, or NDA 3. They should also give us a commitment that they will never do so,” he added.
The BJP has slammed the Telangana government for reportedly involving international experts in its caste survey panel, questioning the need for foreign involvement in a matter of domestic policy.
